I think you raise valid points regarding the sometimes frustrating process of using opensource software. I think all that is required here is some people who use Mac Windows and Linux to offer to package the software for each platform.
Once it's installed it looks pretty simple to use as shown in Douglas' documentation. Command line does not necessary mean complicated, but some people do freak out about that kind of thing. Rob On 12/08/2011, at 6:19 PM, Luke Munn wrote: > Sounded promising, and then unfortunately not so much.... > > It's open source software and the positives are you can run it on > basic systems which don't cost very much, but then galleries must hire > yourself to set it up. Seems like these aspects cancel each other out, > or at least set up a very limiting situation. > > Wouldn't it be better to provide compiled versions of the software for > Mac OSX etc, an intuitive GUI, some good documentation, and sell the > software? Then people without C++ programmers and yourself at their > organisations could setup and benefit from it, plus financially it's a > much lower price point, with a (potential) much bigger market beyond > NZs shores which could support the work. > > Don't mean to rant, just have worked with too many projects where > 'free as in media' becomes 'frustrating as in compiling, command line, > and no documentation'. Surely the rise of apps, most of which are > focused 'single serving' style, has suggested the opposite is true, > less features and more usability makes people more open to downloading > and using your software, even if it's not open-source. > > Cheers, > Luke > > > > On 12 August 2011 07:13, Douglas Bagnall <[email protected]> wrote: >> A few months ago I wrote some software to show synchronised video on >> multiple screens for Leilani Kake's Ngā Hau e Whā at Fresh Gallery. >> It is called Opo. >> >> Since then, almost every video artist I meet says that they once tried >> to do synchronised video which the gallery thought they could sync by >> pressing play on all the DVD players at the same time, but in every >> case the video drifted apart and was ruined and embarrassing. >> >> Meanwhile all the gallery technicians talk about expensive solutions, >> using DVD players that link up or other specialised hardware or >> gazillion dollar Mac software. >> >> Opo is free. All you need is a computer with multiple video outputs >> (like 4 or 6 or maybe even 8), or for heaps of screens, corresponding >> heaps of computers with multiple video outputs. Apart from the extra >> video cards, they are ordinary computers: after the show it can go in >> the office for normal stuff like accounts or solitaire or whatever. >> The Ngā Hau e Whā computer had 4 video outputs and cost $600. >> >> An advantage of this method over DVD players is that you aren't >> restricted to an archaic video format designed for 1990s analogue TVs. >> You can tune your video to suit the projectors (which probably means >> 1024x768 non-interlaced, unless you hire the 1280x720 ADA/Physics Room >> projectors). >> >> It can be a bit fiddly to set up though. So if you want to use Opo >> and aren't too sure about compiling C or testing Gstreamer pipelines, >> you might be best to get the gallery to hire me to do it. >> >> There are websites here http://halo.gen.nz/opo/ and here >> http://repo.or.cz/w/opo.git. >> >> The name references the Video Whale project, which used Gstreamer to >> synchronise video for a video wall in 2002. >> >> http://gstreamer.freedesktop.org/apps/videowhale.html >> >> Video technology has changed quite a bit since then, not all for the >> better, so Opo has to do a few things differently. >> >> Douglas >> _______________________________________________ >> Ada_list mailing list >> [email protected] >> http://aotearoadigitalarts.org.nz/ > _______________________________________________ > Ada_list mailing list > [email protected] > http://aotearoadigitalarts.org.nz/ http://createrevolutionaryart.net [email protected] @vdu23 _______________________________________________ Ada_list mailing list [email protected] http://aotearoadigitalarts.org.nz/
